Unsuprisingly life at Higher Plot is seasonal. Everyday there’s always something wonderful to see or do here in the Somerset countryside.

Our year starts in January with Winter Pruning which takes around 21 days although we do tend to spread this out to take advantage of any brighter spells of weather. It’s something that we really enjoy as pruning can be quite meditative once you lose yourself in the landscape. Once the vines are tied down onto the wireswhich takes about five days, there’s a short break until bud burst which is mid to late April. This is also when we start vineyard tours and so everything wakes up at once! Once the shoots emerge we choose the best ones and this takes about 10 days of walking through the vines. The next stage after this is flowering which tends to happen in late June. Once this has occured we remove the leaves around the potential fruit improve airflow and to let them bathe in the Somerset sunshine. This takes about 5 days. Inbetween all of this the vines need spraying once every two to three weeks depending on the weather. Mid August to the end of September is usually a waiting time and we often get away for a quick pre-harvest break! Harvest itself usually only takes a day and we have wonderful volunteers that arrive first thing and pick through to mid afternoon. Many have done every single harvest and it’s a wonderful social occasion. The grapes go to the winery the same day and once delivered we breathe a large sigh of relief. October to January is largely downtime although there’s always yhe small matter of Chrismas sales which is alwyas lots of fun.